St. Crispin's Appreciation Thread

[meister]



You want SC's? Let me show you my latest 2 pairs which arrived just in time for the Holidays:- 1- 105 in Burgundy / Merlot marbled finish (with very slight almost imperceptible golden chestnut undertones). Hand polished to perfection with the usual typical SC hand carved and hand finished shoe trees which slip in and fit like high performance racing pistons! None of that cheap crappy Edward Green "one size fits all" rubbish here. 2- 401 Balmoral boot in thick but very soft hide, nice heavy firm but supple scotch grain shaft, sensually soft and smooth inner lining, worked to perfection by the most expert hands. This is what "hand made" is supposed to mean. Note the particularly beautiful marbled shoe. Coffee and chocolate on a bed of golden butter and bronze. These are absolutely spectacular! Fit? Well, they feel like all the angels in heaven were sent down to massage your feet all day. I know they are affiliate SF vendors and I should not say anything bad about them here, but hey, I need to say it like it is, trust me, EG and G&G don't come anywhere even close to SC, not even by a very, very, long, long mile.

QED. I honestly reckon those and the pics below on the same page are of some of the best looking shoes I have seen on SF and that's talking as a total shoe tragic BTW. The patina and lasts and semi Bestetti toe treatment are just a knock out. I have been thinking of taking a holiday in Hawaii where I have not been for years but on second thoughts that could lead to rapid bankruptcy.

this maybe ?

There is no way a crease should be forming half an inch into the toecap. They are at least a full size too big IMO. Sorry to spoli your day but you paid a lot for those shoes.

 

[ThinkDerm]



QED.
I honestly reckon those and the pics below on the same page are of some of the best looking shoes I have seen on SF and that's talking as a total shoe tragic BTW.
The patina and lasts and semi Bestetti toe treatment are just a knock out.
I have been thinking of taking a holiday in Hawaii where I have not been for years but on second thoughts that could lead to rapid bankruptcy.
There is no way a crease should be forming half an inch into the toecap. They are at least a full size too big IMO. Sorry to spoli your day but you paid a lot for those shoes.

That's Ethan Desu. He likely did not pay for those shoes. Strange that there is creasing on the toe cap.

 

[NAMOR]

After reading some of the sizing advice from the last couple of days-to size down one- i became worried that i had sized incorrectly with my 104 utility boots (same as ezlau's fit pic). So then earlit this evening, I tried them on again and the fit is perfect. They are marked UK11.5F and I'm a tts12D. Snug and comfortable throughout. A little extra room at the tip but nothing major

 

[Hampton]

I believe that's a 104 instead of 105. 105 is with brogueing. Very nice color/finish on the shoe by the way.

Stc boots in the wild on the NYC subway today

This is hot as f*ck! No spoil pics on this baby.

 

[NAMOR]

^ I know right? Surprised how good they look with denim, especially a pair that straddles dad jeans in color

 

[PiedBeau]



There is no way a crease should be forming half an inch into the toecap. They are at least a full size too big IMO. Sorry to spoli your day but you paid a lot for those shoes.

Thanks for your concern but the person in this picture isn't me, it's one of the guy from The Armoury.

 

[Louis XIV]

ezlau, I agree with all the others, your pair is an absolute winner.
Not only is the style of your pair fantastic but it also seems to fit you very nicely.

 

[bengal-stripe]



I understand, but then, going down half a size and not sizing up a width does not really help. Once you get the size which fits length, the next step, normally, is to fit for width. Sometimes it requires sizing up 2 extra widths.

The point is that SC is the only range of shoes I know where i can size a shoe to fit within about 1/4 inch of my natural foot length and this, together with the hand crafting excellence of the shoemaker, achieves a very "bespoke" feel.

This is why I size down from EG or Lobb UK 9E to a 8.5G in SC, with great success. Of course, the last is very important as well when you look for that bespoke fit.

There is no way in Hades I could do this with EG or G&G, no matter which last we try it with. EG and G&G are ALWAYS more than 1/4 inch longer than the natural length of the foot.

Perhaps I have a "SC" shaped foot? LoL

But you're right, foot shape and form is obviously the key to it all.

I do not know if Saint Crispin or Philip Car believe a toe allowance (the empty space between the end of the toes and the end of the shoe) as short as 1/4” (6 mm) to be a good fit, but to me this is extremely short and likely to cause a sub-optimal fit (resulting in grown-in toe nails and bunions) .

Here is the other extreme, a fitting by Lobb, Paris with a toe allowance in excess of 30 mm

Here is the full photo feature

http://openers.jp/fashion/fashion_special/photo_tokyo_elements10.html

and here the discussion in this forum a few years back

http://www.styleforum.net/t/61535/photos-of-jlp-bespoke-fitting

Too short and too wide is also the most likely explanation for the crease forming within the toe cap here.

this maybe ?

The end of the (relatively long) toe cap exceeds the point where the toes bend which is in turn defined by the position of the ball line. The length from ball to heel is one of the most important measurements in shoe fitting.

Presumably like all things in life, the golden rule is moderation, which would be a toe allowance of somewhere between 16 – 22 mm. If you are happy with 6 mm toe allowance, good for you. But it’s really not something one “should try at home”.

 

[dddrees]

I believe that's a 104 instead of 105. 105 is with brogueing. Very nice color/finish on the shoe by the way.

Stc boots in the wild on the NYC subway today

Awesome

Gorgeous looking boots and they go really well with those jeans.

Well done.

 

[Dr No]

I agree with bengal here, the creasing on toecap is due to a short shoe and the ball is too far front in the shoe.
The creasing is likely also due to width and leather or lasting issue.
Optimally it should not crease like that.
The reason a shorter toe allowance works withSC is the higher toe box a la eastern europe, in a JLP or other more low last, the toe would hit the roof/ front much earlier.
The key is to have your ball of the foot and the shoe ball to align.

 

[Son Of Saphir]



There is no way a crease should be forming half an inch into the toecap. They are at least a full size too big IMO. Sorry to spoli your day but you paid a lot for those shoes.

yes,
the st crispin little big on man here.
it not matter,
it rtw,
rtw fit funny and play many trick
to big shoe sometimes happen in this case.
it fit him good so it good.

 

[Louis XIV]

To me the explanation of bengal stripes makes more sense.
Why should a shoe which is too long crease in the toe box, afterall there is nothing in there which could bend.

 

[Dr No]

Thats what I said

 

[Dr No]

I tried the 1/2 sizing down. It didnt work, sqeezed my toes to death!

 

[Dr No]

Well toe allowance must depend on last toe shape. A pointier last must have allowance, whereas a rounded last could work with shorter allowance.